


Snow Harrie

by Eriador117



Category: Harry Potter - J. K. Rowling
Genre: Fairy Tales, Genderbending, Het, M/M, Slash
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2012-06-17
Updated: 2012-06-17
Packaged: 2017-11-07 23:03:27
Rating: Explicit
Warnings: Creator Chose Not To Use Archive Warnings
Chapters: 1
Words: 16,779
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/436417
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/Eriador117/pseuds/Eriador117
Summary: <blockquote class="userstuff">
              <p>Written for the 2009 Snarry Mixed Games. Thanks to my beta, Rakina, Team Snitch, espeically our captain, Raewhit. Lily has always wanted a little girl with lips as red as blood, hair as black as ebony and skin as white as snow. Loosely based on Snow White with a side order of inspiration from The Bone Doll's Twin by Lynn Flewelling.</p>
            </blockquote>





	Snow Harrie

**Snow Harrie: Part One**

Lily stabbed the needle through the fabric as though she wanted to kill the cloth rather than embroider it. With each stitch she was imagining that she was pricking her stepmother's flesh. Lily hated embroidery and her stepmother knew it. The whole household had been stuck indoors over winter, but now that summer had finally arrived Lily was still stuck inside with her stepmother and two of her ladies-in-waiting. 

Heavy with the swell of their first child, Lily couldn't even accompany James on a simple ride through the countryside. Her gown was melded to her flesh with perspiration and Lily lost concentration on her task for a second. A drop of blood welled up on her finger and dropped onto the pristine cloth. Lily stared at the ebony frame of her embroidery hoop and the crimson rose blooming onto the white cloth. She smiled to herself. Yes, that was what she wanted, what she and James had been trying for all these years: a daughter with hair as dark as ebony; skin as white as snow and lips as red as blood. Lily could almost imagine the weight of her daughter in her arms.

Narcissa glared hard at her stepdaughter. "How are you supposed to take care of a child when you can't even do a simple thing like sew?" taunted Narcissa with an exasperated sigh. She made a drama of putting aside her own work in order to inspect Lily's. The scent of rosemary wafted up from the rushes as she walked across the floor, her blue skirts swirling after her like the wake of a ship. The other women had stopped working and held their breath, waiting for the next battle in the war between wife and daughter. Lily sighed. The spats between Lily and her stepmother were the only entertainment on offer while they were confined with her.

Narcissa took hold of Lily's embroidery, squinting a little in the poor light and shook her head. "No, no, Lily. How many times do I have to tell you? Small stitches, refined, not coarse like that. A peasant woman could do better than you! Unpick it and do it again... what's this?" she demanded, hauling Lily up by the shoulders and thrusting the linen close to her face. It was so close that Lily couldn't actually see what Narcissa was referring to, but she knew what it was just the same. Hadn't she been sewing it all morning?

"It's a tree," said Lily, looking Narcissa square in the eye. 

Narcissa was only a few years older than Lily and they hated each other with a passion, each jealous of the other's claim on King Albus' affections. Lily had never known her mother, who had died in childbirth, so Lily could not compare her stepmother to her real mother, but she resented Narcissa all the same. And Albus always seemed to take Narcissa's side no matter what.

"A tree?" Narcissa shrieked, her silvery blonde hair catching the firelight. "This is an altar cloth and you desecrate it with a heathen symbol!"

"Aren't trees God's creations too?" asked Lily. "I wish the baby was already here so I could actually go out and see some of them rather than be stuck inside with you!"

Narcissa flushed with anger, grey eyes flashing like a stormy sea. 

"And how can you dislike trees?" Lily continued. "Isn't that how you met my father? At the Beltane Rites?"

Lily should have seen it coming, but all she was aware of was a pink blur and a flash of rings before she felt the sting on her cheek. Lily stared at Narcissa in surprise; the two women attendants had their hands to their mouths at what had transpired.

"You're an evil, evil child! How dare you spread such lies about me! Your father will hear of this!"

"Tell him!" Lily retorted. "Tell him that you hit me! He will disown you!"

"Princess Lily, please calm down," said Lady Amelia. "Think of the child."

But Lily was beyond calm now. This fight had been brewing all the months of her pregnancy, for it was the one thing that Narcissa could not give to Albus: an heir. The Kingdom of Gryffindor would pass to Lily and her husband and Narcissa didn't like that, not one bit. Lily had heard that Narcissa had sought out midwives and herbalists, even witches and sorcerers in order to conceive, but none of them had been able to help. They all seemed to think the fault lay with Narcissa, but secretly Lily wondered if her father was too old to father a child any longer.

"Yes, dear Lily," Narcissa said in a sickly-sweet voice. "Think of the child. Think of that longed-for daughter. But what if it is a son you bear?"

"Then Princess Lily will love her son just as well!" snapped Amelia, but Lily couldn't reply as the pains ripped across her abdomen. It was early, far too early! 

"You've cursed me!" Lily shrieked. "You and your witches!"

"Lady Adelaide, fetch the midwife! Fetch Dame Poppy! Quickly, now!" said Amelia.  
Adelaide, a girl of no more than fourteen, bobbed a curtsey and rushed out to fetch the midwife. As the birthing fluid rushed from her, Lily wondered if, far from being too early, it was already too late.

***

James threw the reins of his horse to one of the stable boys, beyond looking after his horse as he normally did after every ride. Sirius, his best friend and King Albus' head huntsman, had ridden hard to give James the message that his child was on its way over a month early and Princess Lily was not expected to survive the birth. Both of their horses were sweating hard and panting for breath. James ignored the greetings of the servants and men-at-arms as he dashed up the stone staircase leading to his and Lily's apartments.

He was stopped outside their shared bedroom by Lady Narcissa (oh, and how she hated that she would never be called a queen!), who smirked at their misfortune. "You cannot enter the birthing room," she said snidely. "It is no place for a man."

"Out of my way! I will see my wife!" James protested, his heart faltering. _Lily, oh Lily!_ She couldn't die, she couldn't! James could not bear it. He pushed Narcissa out of the way and entered the room where Dame Poppy was bent over the abdomen of his wife, a sharp knife in her hand. Lily was so pale; her red hair damp with so much sweat that it looked brown now. James closed the door behind him and slid the bolt home so that Narcissa and her bile would have no effect here.

James stared hard at his wife's flowing hair and that of the midwife; normally a man would only see his wife's unbound hair while they shared intimacies and he did not know where to look.

"Your wife was very distraught and the child was in distress, a natural birth would have killed her." It was only then that James noticed the incision in his wife's womb and he gasped in horror at the midwife.

"What have you done? What sorcery is this?" he demanded.

"Not sorcery, sire, another method of delivering the child. He is well, but will need constant tending if he is to thrive. He came out of the womb too soon; but he is strong despite being so small."

"Lily? How is my wife?"

"As I said she was distraught, I have given her a calming philtre. She will be fine, but she will never be able to bear another child. It is why the child was so early; her womb is damaged and it was a miracle that she even carried children this long."

James' heart ached for his wife. He knew how much Lily wanted a daughter; she had expressed no interest in wanting a son, but a son was what they had. "Children?" he echoed. 

"It was twins, Prince James. The girl died."

"Twins?" James sank down on the clothes chest at the foot of the bed. If only the daughter had lived instead of the son! Lily would have been so happy then and James loved his wife so much that her happiness was more important than his own.

"If only it was the daughter who survived," James began, as if he was talking to himself, but in reality, he was watching the midwife and wondering if he dare asked what he wanted to. Dame Poppy pretended to ignore him, but he saw the flush of recognition in her cheeks. "Isn't there something you could do? Some magic?"

"You do not know what you ask of me!" Dame Poppy protested hotly. "I will not meddle in such unnaturalness!"

"But there is something, isn't there?"

"What you ask of me is magic of the darkest sort."

"But there is a way?" He kept pressing her.

"Aye, there is. But I pray you; do not ask it of me."

"Please. My wife has always wanted a daughter and you say she cannot bear another child. Please, do this for her. I would see her happy again."

"No, sire. I cannot."

"Do it, or I will have you hanged for a witch," James said calmly. The midwife dropped the bloody knife on the floor, her face as pale as that of Lily.

Dame Poppy bowed, but James knew it was no mark of respect, not after what he had threatened.

"Very well, sire. There is a spell, very Dark, that will enable the boy to take on the form of his dead sister. This is a form of necromancy that has been forbidden for hundreds of years. If anyone else knows of this, both of us will be executed. No one must know."

James nodded his agreement, as if he would tell anyone what he had done!

"The magic will not last forever, it will be only temporary."

"How temporary?"

"Ten years? Twenty? It is impossible to say, but one day his form will revert back to that of his birth and he will become male again. Are you sure you wish to put your child through such a thing? To be brought up as a girl, to _be_ a girl until the spell can no longer keep up the pretence? To then suddenly turn into a male?"

James stared again at the pale, still form of his wife. It was worth it.

For Lily he would do anything. _Anything._

***

**Snow Harrie: Part Two  
Eighteen Years Later**

Lily should have expected it; after all it wasn't the first time she had discovered her daughter climbing trees, but to do it today of all days! The guests were already trickling into the castle but thankfully Prince Severus and his retinue hadn't yet arrived. 

"Harrie! Come down from there at once!" Lily stood at the foot of the sycamore tree; her hands on her hips as she shouted at her wayward daughter. Harrie hadn't turned out to be the daughter Lily had longed for. Harrie wasn't interested in embroidery and gossip but she did learn all the arts that a young woman of her status was expected to: deportment, decorum, music, embroidery and painting. Although going by her recent behaviour Lily wondered if Harrie had paid any attention to her decorum lessons at all!

Not only that, but Harrie had insisted she learned from the boys' tutors as well. Now Lily had a daughter who had studied mathematics, science, languages and anything else a young man was supposed to know. But where she would find use for such frivolities, Lily could never guess. 

Lily wasn't deaf; she'd heard the rumblings from the servants, how they thought Harrie wild and unfit to be a princess. And it was true, that was the worst part. Harrie was more often to be found climbing trees or riding off on her horse, without even a chaperone, so that Lily knew the rumours would only get worse! Thankfully, Harrie had yet to start her monthly courses, so at least even if there had been any inappropriate behaviour, a child wasn't a likely outcome. The sooner Harrie was married and settled the better! Her husband would soon put a stop to tree-climbing and unchaperoned rides gallivanting all over the countryside!

"It's my fault, your majesty," said Sirius, as his head popped round from behind Harrie's. "I wanted to show Harrie something."

"I might have known! You spoil your goddaughter far too much, Sirius. What was so important that it couldn't wait until after the wedding?"

"Look, Mama!" Harrie exclaimed, holding out a white fluffy ball.

"What is that?"

"It's an owl," Sirius replied. "It's been abandoned in the nest. Either the parents have died or have left her. I thought Harrie might like to keep her. Think of it as an early wedding gift."

"I'm sure her husband won't want to be bothered with all that nonsense! Put it back, Harrie."

"But Mama, she'll die if I leave her out here! Prince Severus won't have to be bothered. I'll look after you, won't I, Hedwig?"

"You've named it?" Lily threw up her hands in despair. "Very well, but you will leave it with the falconer for now. You will get ready for your wedding ceremony if I have to tie you to the altar myself!" Lily knew that even if she didn't give in about the owl, James would. Sirius wasn't the only one who spoiled Harrie.

Harrie grinned at Sirius and taking hold of the owl chick in one hand she jumped from the tree, managing to tear the hem of her gown on a rough branch as she went. 

"Look at the state of you!" Now that Harrie was on the ground it was even more obvious how much Harrie had ignored all the rules of dress and conduct her tutors had tried their best to instil in her. Not only was her hair uncovered; the braids that Lily had arranged that morning were now a thing of the past and Harrie's hair fell in very improper loose, ebony waves down to her waist. The dress itself was a raggedy affair, covered in patches and it looked even worse than some of the peasants' own clothes. Lily had no idea where Harrie would even have found such a thing. Harrie's face was covered in dirt and there were small scratches all over her arms – shockingly bare to the elbow! – and face too. The dress barely covered her ankles and Harrie's feet were as bare as the day she was born. They too were covered in dirt and Lily wondered how anyone could get so dirty in such a short space of time, for she knew Harrie had bathed just that morning.

As they made their way back to the castle, every servant stopped what they were doing to stare at the wayward princess and her furious mother. Harrie's face was flushed with happiness, her eyes sparkling as she held onto her little owl and Lily wished that Harrie's state of dishabille and her happy countenance didn't look so much like she'd just had a romantic rendezvous in a barn! Blushing at the shame of it, Lily took hold of Harrie's shoulder and propelled her towards the mews.

"Fetch your master," Lily commanded one of the underlings, whose name she didn't know. The boy scuttled off and returned a few moments later with Hagrid, Master of the Falcons, beside him. The man was a veritable giant, with bushy black hair and a black beard, but he was gentle with the birds and any other animals put into his charge.

"Your majesty, Princess Harrie," he bowed from the waist.

"Can you take care of Hedwig for me?" Harrie asked, extending her hands to show the owl.

"O' course I can, Princess. Don't yeh fret none, I'll look after her, I promise."

"You can send it on to the princess when she's more settled and the bird has grown more useful."

"Yes, your majesty."

"Thank you, Hagrid," said Harrie.

"Come along, Harrie! We don't have all day."

"Yes, Mama."

***

Lily drew the comb through Harrie's hair and glimpsed her daughter's smiling face in the looking-glass. Where had the time gone? Where was the small girl who had knelt at Lily's feet to hear her stories? Who was this young woman smiling back at her?

"Are you excited?" Lily asked her daughter's reflection, remembering only too well her own first meeting with James. She had been frightened that her father might have betrothed her to some doddery old man, or an ugly one or one who would beat her. She'd been pleasantly surprised to meet the young earl her grandfather had intended for her.

Harrie blushed and looked despondently down at her knees. "Mama, what if he thinks I'm ugly?"

It was true that Harrie was a bit more ungainly than some of the other girls in the castle, but she had all her own hair and teeth and her back was as straight as a rod. Her complexion was the envy of many of the other girls as were her eyes, which were a deep emerald, just a touch darker than Lily's and they always seemed to see more than what was going on under the surface.

Lily kissed the top of her head. "Ugly? Then he would be a fool or blind or both! You are beautiful, my dear, and Prince Severus is lucky to have you!" 

The betrothal had been in place shortly after Harrie's birth. Lily had been so unwell afterwards that she had wanted to make sure her daughter would be well provided for after she and James were gone. Prince Severus of Slytherin had been a childhood friend of James. Lily had wanted someone older for Harrie, someone who would be able to look after her daughter if she couldn't.

"You don't mind that he is older?" Lily asked, not wanting her daughter to be disappointed in the match, but unsure how they could dissolve the engagement if she was without starting a war between their kingdoms.

"Oh, no, Mama! The boys my age are such children! I mean, I like Neville, but I can't imagine being married to him!"

Lily laughed. Neville was a nice boy, but not for her daughter. "And you still haven't needed any personal linens?" she asked rather worriedly.

Harrie blushed again. "No, but Dame Poppy says I am perfectly healthy though."

And indeed Harrie was. She'd never been ill a day in her life, despite looking so delicate. 

"Well, sometimes it just takes time," Lily murmured. She felt a brief pang of guilt that she hadn't told Harrie what was going to happen on her wedding night, but no one had told Lily either and things had worked themselves out. Harrie would just have to find out at the time, like everyone else seemed to. She hoped Severus would be gentle with her. 

Still, it was very odd that Harrie had yet to have her first moon-course. Lily herself had started at eleven, long before any of her nurses or maids had thought to tell her what happened when a girl grew into a woman. And now that she looked,  
Lily noticed that Harrie was still fairly flat-chested, much like the younger girls running about the castle than girls her own age. That was probably why she hadn't started her courses yet; Lily judged it would be a while before she could look forward to grandchildren.

Lily lifted up the wreath of flowers and placed it on Harrie's head, a smile on her face. 

"Ready to meet your new husband?"

"Ready."

***

"Severus, will you stop fidgeting," Remus slapped Severus' hands away from his tunic. "The poor girl is probably nervous enough without you jumping about like a flea!"

Severus wriggled, trying to get comfortable in the tunic that was much more tightly fitted than he was used to and to the collar that seemed to be choking him. In deference to the fact that he was attending his own wedding, he had forgone his usual black for a shade of midnight blue with an embroidered design of two silver snakes on the front of his tunic. There was also the fact that Remus had hidden all his black clothes so he couldn't wear them anyway. His leather breeches were brown, but at least they were an older pair and moulded perfectly to his shape. The tunic felt as if it was cutting off his breath and his common sense.

"Tell me again why I agreed to this? I've never even met her!" he growled.

"But you have seen a portrait, haven't you?"

"Dozens of them, they sent me one every year on Harrie's birthday along with a list of her current achievements. I felt like a schoolmaster and they wanted to make sure I knew all of her merits. We have also started a personal correspondence of late. She seems quite intelligent," he added grudgingly.

"There you are then, you do know her."

Severus snorted. "You know what portrait painters are like! They're paid to paint the most flattering likeness of the subject! She could be as ugly as sin and I couldn't do a thing about it!"

Remus laughed. As well he might, Severus thought, for Severus knew he was not exactly the most handsome man in the kingdom, or any of the neighbouring kingdoms for that matter. Not like Prince Charming of Lockhart, all sparkling teeth and bright blue eyes... Severus sighed; if only _princes_ were allowed to get married to each other instead of bringing princesses into it. Severus had a crush on Prince Charming and had happily daydreamed away many an hour as he thought of the two of them setting up home together. But, alas, it was not to be, for Charming had of course bowed down to convention and married Cinderella.

The small chapel of Hogwarts Castle, seat of the rulers of Gryffindor, was packed  
to capacity and even more guests spilled out onto the lawns outside for there wasn't room for them all inside. Father Mungo looked as ancient as the stone walls they stood inside with his grey hair, grey beard and grey eyes that seemed to be looking anywhere but at the waiting groom and his best man. The bride was already late and Severus wondered if the princess had in fact changed her mind. It wouldn't bother him in the least, it hadn't been his idea for the betrothal but he had felt obliged when James suggested it. After all, James had saved his life more than once and Severus thought it was the least he could do to repay his debt.

Suddenly the organ began playing and all heads turned towards the door of the chapel. Sunlight was streaming in behind the figures there, so all Severus could see were shadows until they moved further into the church. James was there, resplendent in gold and silver, as befitted the King of Gryffindor, but it was the figure on James' arm that drew Severus' gaze. Harrie had such a pale complexion that Severus realised now why he had heard some people call her by her nickname, 'Snow Harrie'.

Harrie was slender, but a head shorter than Severus, just the way he liked his lovers. Deep emerald eyes were shining with excitement, and they seemed to light up even more when Harrie caught sight of Severus. A blush stained the pale complexion pink, drawing the eyes to the perfect cupid-bow of the lips, red and ripe for the plundering. Harrie had no hips to speak of and no cleavage either. Severus' betrothal gift lay around her neck: a silver locket with emeralds marking out the letter S. The jade green gown Harrie wore was set off with a silver girdle, which seemed to do little but remind the gathered guests that Harrie's body was unlike that of the other women present. In fact, if it hadn't been for the long hair and the fact that she was wearing a dress, Severus might well have mistaken her for a young man. He smiled to himself; maybe marriage wouldn't be so bad after all.

"Dearly beloved," Father Mungo began and Severus' thoughts turned to his newly anticipated wedding. 

***

 

Harrie stared at the scrap of fabric she was expected to wear. The white nightgown was sheer and once on it would reveal more than it hid. She held it up to Hermione and Luna, who both blushed and giggled behind their hands. "They don't really expect me to wear this, do they?"

"It's traditional," said Hermione, trying her best to stem her laughter but not quite succeeding. Harrie didn't find any of it funny. Harrie had of course heard all the rumours regarding her so-called 'wildness', and she knew most of the servants already considered her damaged goods. For why else would she sneak out of the castle without a chaperone? Harrie must have a lover stashed away somewhere.

But Harrie didn't have a lover and compared to her two best friends and ladies-in-waiting, Hermione and Luna, Harrie was very much an innocent in matters of love. Oh, she'd heard all about it, for Harrie was often in the company of soldiers and servants who seemed to forget she was there and talked freely of all of it, including what the soldiers got up to with each other. She knew the theory, but theory didn't really help when she was terrified out of her wits about what was going to happen on her wedding night. This flimsy gown was doing nothing to reassure her. Harrie knew her body was not like the other girls', anyone with eyes could see that. Would Severus be cruel to her and force her to his will or was he more of a seducer?

"He has kind eyes," said Luna, as if she could sense Harrie's distress. Sometimes Harrie had the impression that Luna knew a lot more than people gave her credit for. "Prince Severus will not hurt you. We'd better get you ready, he'll be here soon."

Harrie nodded, knowing that no matter what else happened, she had to get through this night or their marriage and the uniting of their two kingdoms would not be considered valid. Thinking of her mother's disappointed face if she didn't go through with the consummation, Harrie stood up so that Luna and Hermione could untie the laces of her wedding gown. The wedding wreath had already been discarded and Luna had braided her hair out of the way.

Harrie balked when she was down to her shift and underlinens; she couldn't let her husband see her in that scrap of clothing, but her shift was stained with nervous sweat and she had no other nightclothes in the bedchamber that was to be theirs for the wedding night, as it was one of the guest chambers and not her own room. Once  
Luna removed the shift, Harrie had a quick wash in the basin before putting on the flimsy nightgown, but she still kept her under-drawers on.

"They'll have to come off," said Hermione. "Your husband will expect you naked under there. You just need to relax, Harrie. It'll be over before you know it." 

Hermione had recently married one of the soldiers, Lord Oliver, so at least she was speaking from experience. Harrie wished her mother was here, but now that Harrie was married, she was considered her own mistress and only her own ladies were allowed in attendance.

"It doesn't last all night?" Harrie asked in some surprise. The phrase, 'wedding night' always seemed to mean to her that love-making would last all night too.

"Goodness, no!" exclaimed Hermione. "Whatever gave you that idea? You'll be lucky if it lasts ten minutes!"

_Ten minutes?_ That couldn't be right, surely? All this fuss over something that was only going to last that long? Well, if it was only ten minutes, Harrie knew she could cope with that. Hermione's words had settled her nerves at least, but nothing could prevent the embarrassed blush as she pulled down her drawers, knowing everything was visible through the nightgown. She scurried under the bedcovers and pulled them up to her chin as she waited for the knock on the door that she knew was coming.

As soon as it did so, Hermione opened the heavy oak and admitted Severus, who was accompanied by his man, Remus, Harrie thought his name was. Severus too was dressed in nightclothes, but his grey nightshirt wasn't sheer and he had a fur-lined bed robe on over it. Severus stared at her as he removed his over robe, making Harrie blush further. Once Severus climbed into bed beside her, the three attendants left them alone. Harrie was relieved that it was no longer the custom for witnesses to be present for the consummation.

Harrie was breathing heavily, her earlier nervousness returning tenfold now that she was actually in bed with a man. With her husband! It was hard to believe.

"Are you hungry, Harrie?" Severus asked, as his eyes took in the platters of food that were scattered about the room. There was bread and cheese along with a selection of fruit and jugs of wine.

"No, my lord," said Harrie in a small voice.

"You're my wife, Harrie. I would prefer it if you would call me Severus."

"Severus. No, I'm not hungry. I'm too nervous to be hungry." Harrie didn't know why she had told him that, but there was something about him that seemed to inspire the sharing of confidences.

Severus coughed delicately. "You do know what is to happen tonight? The consummation?"

"I know _of_ it," Harrie clarified. "But I've never done it before."

"Ah. So you've never had a lover?" Severus lay down and pulled Harrie down beside him but he released her almost at once. She felt like a block of wood in his arms, so stiff and solid. 

Harrie wished she could relax like Hermione had suggested. "Never." 

"I have heard it said that you liked to escape the castle unchaperoned," Severus said, but he sounded amused and the corners of his mouth quirked up in a smile.

"I did," Harrie admitted. "But it was never to meet a lover. I just liked to ride out into the countryside by myself. Sometimes I felt stifled here. I was expected to be prim and proper and spend my days doing embroidery. I hate embroidery!"

"There's nothing wrong with wanting to get away from things for a while, but now that you are married to me, I cannot allow you to go riding unaccompanied."

"I understand." Harrie suspected she had just forsaken one cage for another. No more riding, no more climbing trees or anything else her husband didn't want her to do.

"No, you don't. I said you can't go if you are unaccompanied, not that you cannot ride altogether. I will accompany you or if I am not available, one of the staff. I do not want to lock you in a gilded cage, Harrie."

Harrie was lying on her side, Severus lying beside her. Severus kept looking at her, looking at her mouth. His eyes were dark and deep, as though he wanted to take her lips and bite until she was completely devoured. They were close enough to be touching, but they weren't. There was about an inch between their bodies, and she felt her whole body tremble with the need to be touched by him. Harrie had never been kissed, had never even been this close to a man before who wasn't her father or her godfather. But neither of them had made her feel anything like this.

Harrie licked her lips and she didn't just _see_ the spark of desire that lit Severus' eyes at the gesture, she felt it too, deep in that secret place between her thighs. Her whole body was trembling with something she had never felt before: desire. She wanted this man; she _ached_ for this man. Harrie glanced up at him; opening her mouth in invitation; feeling the warm air of his breath, a little wine-laden after the wedding feast, as he leaned his head towards her. Harrie closed her eyes, her whole body thrumming with anticipation.

Despite looking so thin, his lips felt full and soft as they kissed her. A warm, moist kiss that made her heart beat erratically and made her feel as if she was falling, even though she was already lying down. Both of Severus' hands cupped her face, while he teased her with little nips and nibbles, soothing them with a soft swipe of tongue.

Harrie moaned deep in her throat, her hands going around Severus' waist almost of their own accord, pulling him closer to her. She couldn't get close enough; she wanted them to meld into one being, forget everything on the other side of the bedchamber door and just concentrate on the now. And right now, she wanted Severus. Yearned for him like she'd never yearned for anything in her life before.

"God's teeth, Harrie. I want you," Severus moaned, echoing her own thoughts and now Harrie could feel the press of his manhood against her abdomen. It felt so hot and hard and the throbbing between her legs intensified at the thought of it going inside her. Filling her. She shifted, wrapping her legs around Severus' thighs and rutted against him, feeling tension coiling tighter and tighter inside her.

"Wait," said Severus as he gentled her with soft kisses. He kissed the shell of her ear before kissing all along her neck and shoulder. Severus sat up and pushed her down against the pillows, staring hard at her. His erection was tenting his nightshirt and there was a damp spot at the front of it, but Harrie didn't understand why it was wet. Who would have told her things like that? The soldiers and servants had never mentioned that in all their boasting. As she'd moved position, she noticed she felt moisture too between her legs and wondered if this feeling of being wet together meant that they were in love.

Severus' hands moved down her body, caressing her skin through the sheer nightgown. When he reached the bottom of it, he lifted it up to her waist and stroked the bare skin of her thighs. His fingers were like a living flame, burning her skin wherever he touched, etching his desire, his possession of her like a brand and Harrie could almost imagine that she could hear her skin sizzle with every touch.

Harrie was shifting restlessly now; Severus' hands were so close to where she wanted to be touched, where she _needed_ to be touched, but she was too shy to ask for it. Her moans were almost constant now. Severus was still teasing her thighs and Harrie wasn't sure how much more of her husband's teasing she could take. "Please, husband!" she begged him.

Harrie's heart was pounding in her ears and as Severus made a possessive groan into her mouth, she felt as if her whole body was melting. There was fire pooling in her lower belly and between her legs and she could no more stop the arch of her body against his than she could stop the moon from rising.

"Harrie, oh, Harrie," Severus murmured against her mouth, before he left off to continue kissing and sucking at her neck. Severus' hands skimmed along her sides, before returning and plucking at her small nipples through the fabric of the gown. Harrie bucked wildly, her legs opening wider of their own accord. Everywhere Severus was touching her set her whole body aflame and Harrie wondered if you could die from this. It felt so _intense_. 

Harrie arched her hips again in a silent plea for those hands to stop teasing her and go where they were needed instead. Severus smiled softly at her before trailing his fingers through the dark hair at Harrie's groin. Lower and lower Severus' fingers went; two slid inside her easily, she was so open and wet.

"OH! OH!" Harrie gasped out as waves of pleasure washed over her, her whole body shuddering with the force of her ecstasy. "Severus! Severus!" 

Severus kissed her deeply, thrusting his tongue into Harrie's mouth. She sucked greedily on her husband's tongue, feeling the need for something in her mouth. Severus' fingers were still within her, still fondling and stretching her. The need was coiling in her belly again and her hips just wouldn't stay still. Harrie pulled away from their kiss.

"I want you, husband. All of you," Harrie whispered, blushing at her own boldness, but feeling too aroused for it to matter for long.

"Harrie," Severus whispered against her hair before he pulled his nightshirt from his body and threw it on the floor. Harrie couldn't help staring; she'd never seen a naked man before and her eyes were drawn to the scars decorating her husband's chest. His chest was covered in hair, with two bald patches around his nipples. Tentatively, she reached up to touch it; the hair was soft and she sighed as she did so.

Above her, Severus hissed and closed his eyes. Moisture was dripping from his cock and she gasped as it landed on her bare belly. "What does it mean?" Harrie asked at last. "That we're wet?"

"Oh, God," Severus moaned. "It means I want you and you want me. That we desire each other's bodies." All the time he was speaking, Severus' fingers were still stretching Harrie, still stoking that fire that built up inside, but it was no longer enough. Harrie wanted something bigger, wanted to feel full and stretched. 

"Please, Severus. Please!" Harrie begged again.

Severus nodded as he removed his fingers. He took hold of Harrie's hip and lined himself up before entering her slowly. Harrie gasped in pain as he breached the barrier of her maidenhood, but Severus kept it slow, stretching her gently until the pain eased and the pleasure returned. Harrie loved it, loved the slow side of her husband inside her; the feel of being stretched so tenderly, so carefully.

"All right, my Harrie?" Severus asked, concern etched on his face.

Harrie's heart stuttered; no one had ever called her 'My Harrie' before and she loved the sound of it. Once Severus was fully sheathed inside her, he let out a grunt and gripped her hips so tight Harrie was sure they would bruise. There was still some discomfort at first, but the more she got used to it, the more the pain receded and pleasure took its place.

Harrie was aching with want again and she shifted her hips to try and get Severus to move; he took the renewed arching of her body as an invitation to do just that. 

"Harrie! Oh, Harrie!" Severus moaned, but soon neither of them could form words, it was a constant barrage of wordless groans and moans as they sought their peak together.

Suddenly Severus stiffened and Harrie felt the walls of her vagina bathed in her husband's warm seed and wondered if it would make a child. Severus pulled out shortly afterwards and Harrie wailed in disappointment. "No!"

"Did I hurt you?" Severus asked, kissing her briefly on the lips.

Harrie shook her head. He hadn't hurt her, but she was left aching and in need and had no idea how to tell him that she needed more. In the end, it seemed she didn't need to tell him, for he already knew.

"Ah, you are still not sated? Well, we'll just have to remedy that, won't we?" Severus   
grinned at her before slipping down the bed and pushing her legs apart, his hair brushing her thighs.

"Severus, what are you doing?" Harrie asked.

"Something you'll enjoy," Severus assured her just before he thrust his deep tongue inside her. A few moments later, Harrie was shouting out her enjoyment for the whole castle to hear.

***

As always, when she was feeling in need of some comfort, Lily went to the room that held the magic mirror her father had left her after his death. As yet, Lily hadn't noticed anything magical about it. The frame was gilded with words in a language she didn't understand around the outside, for Lily had never studied languages herself. How times had changed since she was a girl! Now all the nobles wanted their daughters as well as their sons to have an education.

Despite showing not an ounce of supposed magical abilities, the mirror made Lily feel close to her father and now that Harrie was married she needed some of that closeness again. Harrie would go to her husband now, not her mother. There was a deer hunt in the morning as part of the week-long wedding celebrations but Lily knew they would all be so busy that it would be difficult to find some time to speak to Harrie alone.

Pushing the stout wooden door open, Lily realised at once that something was different. There was a strange blue glow within the room that seemed to be emanating from the mirror. It didn't frighten her, but there was a strange swooping sensation low down in her stomach as she caught a glimpse of a face in the mirror. Was it Albus, her father? Lily marched up to the mirror and gasped, a hand going to her mouth. If it was her father, he had changed dramatically in death.

The face that looked out upon the room was as pale as alabaster and resembled a skull more than any human head. Instead of nostrils there were two large slits, making the image appear very serpentine. And instead of the twinkling blue eyes she remembered, this figure's eyes were as red as Harrie's lips.

_Welcome, my child_ , the mirror greeted her. _What is your most fervent wish?_

Lily thought long and hard, but really, there was only thing she had ever wanted. "My daughter's happiness."

The mirror cackled. _Alas, that is a wish that even I cannot grant, for you have no  
daughter._

"What do you mean?" Lily demanded. Even as she asked the question, she knew it was ridiculous! Of course she had a daughter!

_Secrets and lies, that's what they have given you, both of you. You have no  
daughter; you have a son._

No! It was impossible! Lily would have _known_ , she would have _seen_!

_Let me take you back,_ said the mirror. _Back eighteen years ago._

In the blink of an eye the vision in the mirror changed and Lily could see the deception her husband and Dame Poppy had wrought. The betrayal stabbed her like a knife in her belly and she sank to the floor in shock.

_You know what to do, don't you, my dear? How to make it right again?_

Anger boiled, hot and fierce inside her. Lily nodded. "Harrie must die."

***

**Snow Harrie: Part Three**

Severus awoke to sunlight streaming through the cracks of the window shutters and a feeling of languidness throughout his whole body. While his preference was indeed for the male form, he had been with women before. But they had been vastly more experienced than Harrie. Severus had worried that he would have been unable to deal well with trying to deflower a frightened virgin. Harrie may have been inexperienced, but she certainly hadn't been frightened and had welcomed all of their lovemaking with an innocent passion that had spurred Severus' own passion to even greater heights. He smiled in the warm sunlight and turned to her, but the bed was empty of his bride.

Severus heard a whimper coming from the corner of the room. He sat up and saw Harrie tucked in the corner between the wall and a clothes chest. Harrie's hands were at her groin and she let out another small whimper, as if she was trying not to let Severus hear her.

Severus felt as if he'd been doused in a barrel of cold water. Had he been so far gone in his pleasure last night that he had hurt her without meaning to? Severus climbed down from the bed, wrapping his bed robe over his naked form as he did so. He knelt down beside Harrie and took her in his arms, but that only served to distress her further.

"Don't look! Don't look!" Harrie pleaded; her voice high and panic-stricken.

"Harrie, did I hurt you last night?"

"No, Severus," Harrie said. "It isn't that. I'm not hurt."

"What is it then?"

"I don't know how to tell you. You'll hate me!" Harrie sobbed, resting her head on Severus' shoulder.

"Please tell me, Harrie. Nothing you can say is going to make me think any less of you. We're married now; we will take care of things together."

"I'm a freak!" Harrie yanked up the sheet that she'd been hiding under.

Severus gasped in surprise as he stared and stared at Harrie's groin and the quiescent cock sitting on dark curls. "Harrie, you're a boy." Had Severus imagined he'd made love to a woman last night?

"What's happening to me?" Harrie wailed in distress and Severus realised that, no, he hadn't imagined it. Harrie had been a woman last night and was a man this morning. There was only one explanation: magic of some sort had to be involved, but what sort and why? What did anyone hope to gain by turning Harrie into a boy?

"Wait here, Harrie, while I go and fetch Remus."

"But my ladies, they'll be coming for the sheet and to bathe me," Harrie protested. "They'll see!"

The sheet wasn't a problem, the proof of Harrie's virginity lay on the linen in crimson spots, but bathing Harrie was another matter. Until they found out what was going on, it was best no one knew what had happened to her. "We'll bathe each other this morning, we are newlyweds after all," said Severus, smiling encouragingly at her. At him? Which was Harrie's true sex? "No one will begrudge us that."

Severus would have quite liked to linger and take his time exploring Harrie's new male body, but knew they needed to see Remus as soon as possible so their wash was quick and perfunctory. During the night, fresh clothes had been laid out in the clothes chest in their bedchamber so as soon as they dried off, they got dressed again. Harrie sat on the edge of the bed, Severus behind him as he braided Harrie's long hair and placed the veil over his head. Now that they were married, only Severus would be seeing Harrie's hair uncovered and unbound. 

"Will you seek an annulment?" Harrie asked, biting his bottom lip. Severus kissed the top of his head.

"No, my Harrie. I promised to love you always, did I not?"

"But that was when you thought I was a girl, wasn't it?"

Severus debated whether or not to tell Harrie the truth, but in the end he knew it would be best. After all, Harrie had trusted him with this development, when he could have pretended for a bit more, claiming headaches or womanly troubles if Severus tried to initiate intimacies again.

"Harrie, do you know that some men form attachments to other men? And live with them like men do with their wives?"

"I do. Neville, one of the castle guards, has a sweetheart who is a man. That was the only reason Mama let me stay with him unchaperoned, she knew nothing would happen with Neville. Oh, so does that mean you prefer men? You want me to stay like this?"

"What do you want to do, Harrie? Which would you prefer to be?" For Severus would not force Harrie into something he didn't want.

"I – I don't know," Harrie admitted just as there was a knock on the door. Severus kissed Harrie's head again before going to open it. Harrie's two ladies, Lady Hermione and Lady Luna were there and beside them stood Remus, with a broad grin on his face. Hermione and Luna waited while Harrie got off the bed and they saw the bloodied sheet. They gathered it up without a word and as they left Remus made to leave with them.

"Remus, a word if you please," said Severus as the two women bowed and hurried off. Remus looked curiously at both of them. Harrie sank down on the bed again, looking even paler than the snow she was named after. "Bolt the door."

Remus did so and folded his arms over his chest, waiting for Severus' explanation. When none was forthcoming, he launched into one of his own. "It wasn't consummated?" he asked at last.

"Yes, it was," Severus replied. "That wasn't what we needed to talk to you about. Harrie, promise me this will stay between us. That you will not betray Remus’ secret.”

“I promise,” said Harrie.

“We need your skill, Remus."

"Sorcery is not tolerated in this land," Remus said carefully.

"Whether it is tolerated or not, someone has cast a curse on Harrie. Can you detect what it is?"

Harrie nodded. "I don't care if he is a sorcerer; I just want to know what is happening to me."

Remus stood beside Harrie and waved his hands over Harrie's form, his forehead puckering in concentration. "I can't detect any curse, not now."

"But there was something?"

"Yes, but the curse's magic has faded. Harrie is no longer under any curse. Whatever the curse was, it's been broken."

"Thank you, Remus. We will be down to break our fast presently."

Remus bowed and left the room; as soon as he did so, Severus bolted the door again.

"Oh God!" Harrie moaned holding his head in his hands. "So this is me? I really am a boy?"

"It looks that way," Severus said.

"But why would someone pretend I was a girl all these years? And use magic to make me look like one? Magic has been banned here for centuries!"

"I don't know, Harrie. But until we find out, perhaps it would be best if you still pretended you were a girl."

"Still wear gowns you mean? I was never much into all the other girly things," Harrie said softly. "And maybe now we know why. I never _was_ a girl. Who am I? _What_ am I?"

Severus embraced him and kissed Harrie soundly on the mouth. "You're Harrie. My Harrie."

***

Breakfast over; preparations for the hunt were well underway. Lily decided to use Sirius; Harrie trusted him and would suspect nothing if her godfather led her off to the forest alone. Making up some excuse about a lost hunting horn, Lily led Sirius to the room with the mirror. Sirius was too surprised to do anything but stare as the mirror cast a spell on him.

_Imperio! You will listen to Lily, you will obey her instructions._

"Yes," Sirius replied, his dark eyes blank. "I must obey Lily."

"You must find a way to get Harrie alone during the hunt. You will take Harrie deep into the woods and you will kill her. Bring me proof. Bring me Harrie's heart."  
Sirius nodded. "I understand and obey, my Queen."

***

"Sirius, shouldn't we be getting back to the others by now?" Harrie was getting rather worried. They'd been hunting the deer Sirius had said he'd seen for hours now and it was starting to get dark. Already twilight was deepening the shadows of the forest and Harrie just wanted to get back to Severus and safety. Sirius was acting odd; he kept jumping at the smallest noises and Harrie knew her godfather, _his_ godfather was not a nervous man. He looked odd too – his hair was matted with sweat and his eyes darted about, looking anywhere but at Harrie. Did Sirius know the truth? Was that why he was acting so odd?

"Harrie, I can't fight it anymore! You must run! Flee!"

"What?"

"There is danger for you at the castle, you must run and hide!"

"Hide?" Harrie asked, not understanding. "Hide where?"

"Anywhere she can't find you! She wants you dead!"

"Who?"

"The queen."

"My _mother_?"

"She's insane, Harrie, but she means to do it! You must flee before the spell compels me to kill you." Sirius raised his hunting knife high above his head. Harrie screamed just as a doe darted between the trees and Sirius threw his knife at the deer. The doe fell to the ground with a soft thump and Harrie jumped from his horse.

"I'll tell them you've died," Sirius said, still with that strange glint in his eye. "I'll bring back the deer's heart as proof."

"But I can't leave Severus!" 

"You must. You must forget everything about your old life if you want to live. Now, run! I can't stay my hand for much longer!" Sirius removed his bow and nocked an arrow to the string, aiming for Harrie's heart. Harrie had no choice, not if he wanted to live. And the desire to live was strong, even if it was in a body he had never known before. The arrow missed and thudded into a tree trunk close to his head.

Harrie ran and ran, branches of trees taking on the form of skeletal fingers as he dashed by them. Animals scurried to and fro through the bracken; owls and other night birds were already calling and his heart broke anew remembering the little owl he'd rescued only yesterday.

He had no food or water, what was he going to do? Harrie could forage in the forest for some wild berries, but he had no weapon for hunting, his bow was still on the back of his horse. No doubt Sirius would make up some story that Harrie had been thrown from it and died. Severus would know it was a lie, wouldn't he? His friend Remus would know, maybe he could use magic to find Harrie?

Harrie ran until his lungs and legs gave out; then he fell to the forest floor; his vision turning black and red.

***

**Snow Harrie: Part Four**

When Harrie awoke, he was lying on a soft feather bed and wondered if it had all been a dream. But as his eyes adjusted he realised he was not in any room of the castle he recognised; in fact he wasn't in the castle at all but what looked to be a peasant's cottage. The bed was in the main room, one wall was taken up with a large fireplace and a scrubbed wooden table in the middle had chairs and place settings for seven. 

"Hello?" Harrie called, but the house seemed to be empty. Harrie got up and explored the room; a curtained-off alcove held a ladder up to an upper floor. Harrie wondered if the other residents were still abed – it wasn't long past dawn judging by the light filtering through the windows. There was no sound from above though, not a snore or a sniffle.  
Space inserted  
As he swept past the table again, he saw a note addressed to him. How did they know his name? Harrie read the note, fear clutching at his chest as he did so. If they knew his name, they knew he wasn't dead. Were they even now heading off to the castle to let them know?

_Harrie, we had an early start this morning. We will be back for breakfast around eight. Please help yourself to any food. Do NOT let anyone in. We have a key so we won't knock.  
Bill._

Harrie had no idea who Bill was. He didn't remember anything about last night at all, but it didn't sound like this Bill chap was about to turn Harrie in. They must have offered Harrie shelter, but he didn't remember it at all. Searching through the well stocked kitchen cupboards, Harrie decided that he would make breakfast for them all before they returned from their work. Harrie was a decent cook, but that was another thing he'd had to keep hidden from his mother. Lily hadn't approved of Harrie spending so much time with the staff, but Harrie had felt much more at home in the hustle and bustle of the kitchen rather than sitting about gossiping and sewing.

Seven places. Did that mean there were six plus Harrie or seven plus Harrie? He'd started chopping up some herbs for the scrambled eggs when there was a loud knock on the outer door. It was echoed by his heart against his ribs as he looked out the window to see who it was. An old pedlar woman with a stooped back held tight to a walking stick and a tray of goods hung from her shoulders. Ribbons, combs and cheap jewellery sparkled in the sunshine.

Harrie opened the top half of the door. "Good morning, ma'am. I'm afraid I am not able to buy anything today." Bill's warning was ringing in his ears and as well as that he had no money.

"I don't mean to trouble you, dearie, but could you possibly offer an old woman a drink of water? I've been walking all night."

"Oh, of course!" Harrie went to the pump over the sink and filled a wooden beaker to the brim with water. As the old woman took the water, her hand trembled and some of it spilled on the ground. It was an old woman; surely Harrie was in no danger from her? "Why don't you come inside and sit down while you drink your water?" Harrie suggested. "Rest your feet for a while."

"Why, thank you, dearie. I think I will."

Harrie busied herself with preparing breakfast while the woman drank her water. Her eyes seemed to follow Harrie's every move.

"What lovely long hair you have."

Harrie's hand flew to his head in panic; his veil was nowhere to be found. He'd forgotten about it this morning. 

"Some of these combs would look pretty in it, don't you think? The red one? Or the green?" The pedlar held up the two combs in question.

"They are pretty," Harrie agreed. "But I don't have any money."

"A gift then, for the water and the rest. An exchange, if you will. It's very bad luck to refuse a gift."

Harrie stared at the two combs. "The green one," he decided at last.

"Excellent choice, it matches your eyes."

Harrie made to take the comb from her, but she shook her head. "Let me, your hands are all covered in flour."

"Oh, thank you," said Harrie sitting down on one of the chairs.

For such a frail elderly woman, the strength in her arms was a surprise. She combed through all the tangles, making Harrie's eyes water at the sudden pain. The pedlar stabbed the comb into Harrie's scalp and he cried out just as his vision wavered. He toppled from the chair onto the tiled floor; he could feel blood trickling from his nose and heard the woman's mad cackle.

"You really shouldn't trust strangers. The comb is poisoned and you will die very soon. Goodbye, Harrie."

***

 

Bill was whistling as they returned to the cottage, a brace of rabbits slung over his shoulder. They would eat well tonight and with all the vegetables Charlie had gathered that morning, they would have the makings of a decent stew. His whistling broke off mid-tune when he saw their new guest lying on the floor of the kitchen, blood pooling around her head.

Charlie and Percy dived down next to her, while the others looked on in horror.

"She's not breathing!" cried Charlie.

"Where did she get that comb?" asked Ginny. "It's not one of mine and she wasn't wearing it last night."

Percy held out his hands towards the comb, a blue glow was enveloping Harrie, but the comb was pulsing black and red. "Poison," Percy said grimly, as he pulled on a pair of gloves and removed the comb from Harrie's scalp, before throwing it on the fire. Harrie groaned and opened her eyes, then they widened in shock on seeing all the people gathered around her.

"Harrie? Do you remember us? We found you last night in the forest and brought you back here. You said you were in danger and today someone poisoned you with that comb."

"It was an old pedlar woman. I felt sorry for her," Harrie admitted as she struggled to sit up. Percy and Charlie helped her stand and then Bill saw all the makings of breakfast spread out over the worktops.

"Harrie, you didn't need to make breakfast for us all. You're our guest."

"I wanted to thank you all for saving me."

"That's very kind, but we all muck in and help. No one person has to do everything."

"I'm sorry I've put you all to so much trouble."

"It's no trouble," said Charlie. "It's a matter of pride. We couldn't leave a damsel in distress, could we?"

Harrie blushed and mumbled something that Bill didn't catch.

"What was that?"

"I'm not a damsel," said Harrie. "That's why I'm in danger. Because I'm a boy."

"Oh, right," said Bill. From Harrie's well-tailored clothes, he guessed Harrie was some sort of nobleman and was disguised as a girl so whoever was looking for him wouldn't find him. The nobles were always killing each other off over land or titles or other such things. Harrie was probably the only heir to a plot of land somewhere and the other nobles wanted to kill him off so they could lay claim. But using an old pedlar woman to do their dirty work – that was stooping too low in Bill's opinion.

"Well, we'll just have to keep you disguised then," Bill said. "I'm sure Ginny might have some dresses that will fit you, you're both about the same height. Anyone seeing you in velvet would wonder what you were doing here. We can pretend you're our kinswoman."

"Thank you, you're all being so kind."

"You're welcome. Just promise me one thing," said Bill.

"Anything."

"Don't let anyone else into the house."

"No, I won't. I've learned my lesson."

***

Lily stared hard at the mirror as the scene faded. "He's still alive? I don't believe it!"

_And yet, haven't I ever shown you the truth?_

"Yes," Lily agreed. It was completely unlike her husband, who had lied to her for eighteen years! "I will have to try again."

_But Harrie will be more careful now._

"I don't care! I will kill him if it's the last thing I do!"

***

**Snow Harrie: Part Five**

The months passed and Harrie found himself fitting in well with the seven members of the Weasley family. He was closest to Ron and Ginny, the three of them being around the same age and sometimes it was easy to forget, there in the warmth of the kitchen, that he was ever in any danger. All of the Weasleys were miners, even Ginny, and although Harrie himself had never liked all of the girlish pursuits at the castle, he found it strange that a woman would work in the diamond mines.

Harrie wanted to work to earn his keep too, but Bill and Charlie thought that it would be too dangerous for him to work in the mines. The other miners would be too curious about him, especially if he turned up in a dress like Ginny. So in the end it was agreed that while the others were out at work or away hunting, Harrie would keep the house and cook. Harrie felt much better now that he felt he was doing something to help.

One night, Ron had Harrie try on some of his clothes, but Harrie found the breeches too clinging and uncomfortable as he was so used to dresses and gowns. The shirt was all right, but Harrie preferred to keep wearing a dress and not just because he was still pretending to be a woman – he just liked them better than trousers.

Most nights Harrie fell asleep as soon his head hit the pillow, he was so exhausted after all his hard work during the day. It was a different life from his royal status as the castle, but it was a good life and he enjoyed it. There was only one thing spoiling his idyll: he missed Severus and sometimes he just couldn't get to sleep wondering where Severus was and whether or not he knew Harrie was alive. Or had Severus given up hope and was even now arranging a marriage to someone else? Had someone else stolen Severus' heart? Harrie punched his pillows, his teeth bared. No one else could have Severus. Severus was _his_!

***

Harrie was out in the front yard, with the rugs hanging over a line as he beat the dust from them with a large beater, when he spotted another pedlar approaching. But this one was a young man of about thirty and so he relaxed a little when he realised it wasn't the same old woman as before.

"Hello, Mistress." He tipped his cap to him, brown eyes twinkling in the sun. "It's a fine morning, isn't it?"

Harrie nodded. The air was still quite warm for October and the sunlight was streaming down on them.

"What are you selling?" Harrie asked. Their stock of herbs was running rather low; he had intended on walking to the market later on, but the pedlar might have saved him a trip. "Do you have any sage?"

"It's your lucky day, I do indeed." The pedlar rummaged in his bag and lifted out a bunch of herbs for Harrie to inspect. Harrie sniffed at the sage, surprised at how fresh it was.

"How much?"

"For a girl as pretty as you, two pennies."

Harrie blushed at the compliment, even though he knew he wasn't a girl any longer. He dashed back to the cottage for his money pouch. Bill paid him every week for keeping the house, even though Harrie had protested that his room and board were payment enough.

"I have some new corsets; they're all the rage in the towns. Could I interest you in those?"

"Corsets? What are they?"

The pedlar rummaged through his bag again and brought out the item; it consisted of two parts tied together with laces. "The lady wears it and it accentuates her shape. Here, it would be better if I demonstrate on you." 

The pedlar stood behind her and began lacing up the corset at the back. It felt a bit tight and Harrie was struggling for breath.

"No, I don't think I'd be interested. It feels far too tight," Harrie said, his words coming out in ragged gasps. "Stop! You're hurting me!"

But the pedlar didn't listen, he just kept tightening the laces until Harrie's vision swam with red dots and he sank to the ground.

***

 

Remus knelt in front of the scrying bowl, his body still except for the rapid rise and fall of his chest. Sweat was dripping down his face, but Remus seemed unaware of it. To Severus, the water in the bowl just looked like water, but then Severus had no magic to speak of so that was hardly surprising. The bowl was silver, carved with runes on the outside of it.

Severus had known from the first that when Sirius had returned with Harrie's horse and a heart in his saddlebag that the heart did not belong to his wife – or should it be husband? For a start, the heart was too big. Severus was an experienced hunter and he knew it belonged to a deer, not a human. But the Queen, much to Severus' horror, seemed ecstatic at being given the heart and learning the fact that her child was dead.

At long last, Remus gave a shuddering breath and the water in the bowl rippled as if a wind had blown across it. "I've found Harrie," Remus said, his voice hoarse with misuse. He'd been sitting in front of the bowl for most of the day. Severus rushed to get him some water and a selection of fruit. After scrying, Remus had no appetite for meat or bread, but he could take fruit.

"Harrie is living in the forest with the Weasleys."

"The Weasleys? That name sounds familiar," said Severus.

"Indeed. They were banished from Gryffindor a few years back for practicing sorcery."

"Is Harrie in danger from them?" 

Remus sighed at his friend. "No, Severus. Not from them. Not all sorcerers are evil. Surely you have realised that by now?"

"Remus, forgive me. I do indeed know that, I am just worried for Harrie."

"As well you should be," agreed Remus. "I sensed no danger from the Weasleys, but there is a darkness surrounding the woods around their home. Something is watching them, waiting for its chance to strike."

Severus flung open the door to his chamber and instructed the servants to ready the horses. They had no time to lose.

***

"I'm sorry, Bill," Harrie said for what must have seemed the hundredth time.

"Haven't you the sense you were born with? Have you learned nothing from a poisoned comb? You could have died if these laces had stayed on you any longer! What possessed you to trust a stranger? Didn't the pedlar woman scare you enough?"

"But it wasn't her!" Harrie protested. "It was a man."

"But I bet it was the same person," Bill said ominously.

"What? How could it be the same person?"

"There are potions that can change a person's appearance. You cannot trust _any_ stranger," Bill repeated. "There is someone out to kill you; you don't need to make it so easy for them!"

"I'm sorry," Harrie said again, his voice small. All he seemed to do was upset people and he wondered if perhaps he had outstayed his welcome at the Weasley cottage.

"Leave him alone," said Percy. "It was a mistake, we've all made them."

"That's true," said Fred.

"Aye," said his twin, George. "Harrie's learned his lesson, haven't you?"

Harrie nodded. "If you want me to leave, Bill, I will go."

Bill sighed and wrapped Harrie up in a hug. "No, Harrie. I'm sorry if that's what I made you think. I'm just worried about you, we all are. Don't you know how much we love you? You're one of the family now, Harrie. We just don't want to lose you."

"Oh." Harrie felt tears prickling the corners of his eyes. He'd never felt such a sense of belonging before, not even with his own mother and father. His mother had despaired that Harrie was never the young lady she had envisioned as her daughter, and Harrie had the impression that the only reason his father paid any attention to him at all was out of a sense of guilt. Had James known that Harrie had never really been a girl?

"I miss Severus," Harrie said softly.

"I know," Bill said, kissing the top of Harrie's head. "But it would be too dangerous  
for you to go to him. As long as most people think you are dead, you will be a lot safer." Bill's words made sense, but they would bring little comfort when Harrie woke in the night to an empty bed.

"So what is the rule, Harrie?" Bill prodded again.

"Let no strangers into the house and accept nothing from them, even if I think it's safe."

"Good."

***

For the next month, Bill made Ron and Ginny stay at home with Harrie just to make sure that Harrie didn't slip up. At first Harrie resented their company, it felt like he was being treated like a child, but they probably resented being his babysitters as well so soon they all made the best of being stuck at the cottage together.

One day, after they had completed all their chores, they were just messing about enjoying a day of autumn sunshine. Ginny was lying on her back and staring up at the clouds, while Ron and Harrie were practicing sword fighting with Bill and Charlie's wooden practice swords.

"Are you hungry?" Ginny asked, distracting Harrie so that Ron was able to wrench the sword out of his hand. "I'll go and see if some of the apples are ready yet."

"Yeah," said Ron, wiping the sweat from his brow. "I could do with one."

Ginny went back to the house for a bowl before she headed into the orchard. It was a while before she returned, by that time Ron and Harrie were too tired to keep practicing, so they were sitting on the benches outside the cottage window. Ginny seemed to be walking funny when she returned, but Harrie assumed it was just because she had a bowl full of apples in her hands and so her bearing was different.

Ron dived into the bowl and bit into a bright green apple, the juice running down his chin. The green ones had always tasted a little bitter to Harrie and he tried to hide his disappointment considering the trouble Ginny had gone to collecting them. 

Ginny smiled lopsidedly at Harrie. "I knew you liked the red ones best."

"Oh, thank you!" Harrie took the proffered red apple from Ginny's hand and bit into its sweet flesh. It tasted delicious and he smiled his thanks at Ginny again as he munched contentedly on it. Ginny's features started wavering in and out, as though Harrie was seeing her through ripples of water. Sounds around him were becoming distorted and Harrie felt his tongue swell in his mouth.

"What did you do?" Harrie asked, but all that emerged from his mouth was a strangled grunt. The world around him was dimming and Harrie struggled to breathe. In the shadows of the trees, Harrie saw his mother. 

"Harrie!" Ron screamed just before Harrie's world went black.

***

**Snow Harrie: Part Six**

It took Severus and Remus the best part of three days to find the Weasley cottage as it had been extensively warded against strangers, but at long last they found it. The cottage was quite obviously a house in mourning: all the curtains were drawn and a black banner hung from the front door. Severus felt as if a fist had reached into his chest and was squeezing his heart so tight that it was a wonder he was still standing. No! They couldn't be too late, they couldn't!

Severus rapped on the wood of the front door with all the force he could muster. A young man around Harrie's age opened it; his face was tear-stained and his red hair streaked with ash for mourning.

"Harrie!" Severus managed to gasp out and another man came to the door. This one was tall and stocky, with his long red hair tied back in a pony-tail. He opened the door to allow Severus to enter the kitchen. There was a glass coffin held between two chairs and within it… "Harrie!" Severus roared and sank to his knees by the side of it, his whole world crumbling in a moment. Harrie was wearing the gown he'd worn for their hunting trip he looked as if he was just sleeping and Severus found it hard to believe that he was really gone.

Severus felt Remus' strong hand on his shoulder in a gesture of comfort, but there could be no comfort from this. Harrie was gone and no power on Earth was ever going to bring him back.

"When?" Severus asked hoarsely. 

It was the long-haired man who answered. "Yesterday. We'd warned Harrie against strangers, but he hadn't known there were other ways to harm him; that friends could do it too."

"A curse?" Remus asked.

"Aye, our sister was struck with Imperius; she'll never forgive herself for this."

"And well she shouldn't!" Severus snapped. "She killed him! She killed my Harrie!"

"Severus, it wasn't the girl's fault. It was whoever put her under the curse. They are the ones to blame." Remus tried to console him, but it didn't work.

"I want to take him home, Remus," Severus said softly. "He's in no danger any longer."

"Of course, your highness," Remus answered.

"Your highness? Forgive us," said Bill as he and the rest of his family fell to one knee and bowed their heads.

"Do you think I care about any of that?" Severus demanded. Nothing mattered anymore, not now that Harrie was gone. "Remus, bring the men in; we will bring Harrie back today."

Remus nodded, clipped his heels together and bowed at the order before carrying it out. A few minutes later four of Severus' soldiers entered and lifted the coffin onto their shoulders.

"We're sorry," Bill said. "We tried to keep him safe."

Severus left the cottage without a word.

***

"Severus, we need to rest the horses and the men!" Remus protested when they'd been travelling almost non-stop for five hours. 

Severus was keen to get back to Slytherin Palace, but seeing the tired faces around him, he reluctantly agreed. The four soldiers who'd been holding the coffin looked ready to drop, and drop Harrie's coffin with them.

"Careful!" Remus warned just as the coffin slipped from their grasp and shattered on the rocks below.

"You clumsy oafs!" Severus roared in anguish as he bent down to lift Harrie from the shards of glass, even though he knew Harrie could no longer feel any pain. He just couldn't let him lie there like that. To his surprise, Harrie was still warm and Severus felt the tears fall from his eyes and land on Harrie's pale face. "Harrie, I'm sorry. I'm so sorry I couldn't protect you."

Severus was sure he must have been hallucinating due to grief when Harrie's eyes fluttered open and a pale hand reached up to caress his cheek. "Severus?"

A few men screamed in alarm, thinking they were seeing a ghost or a remnant, but Severus knew this was no ghost. "Harrie?"

"You there, what's that?" Remus pointed at one of the men.

"It's a bit of apple, sir." The soldier reached down to get it.

"Don't touch it, you fool!" Remus commanded and knelt down beside the slice of apple. "As I thought, poison. My best guess is it got stuck in Harrie's throat and she choked, in effect making her as one dead. But because the poisoned slice got stuck, the poison didn't reach her bloodstream."

Severus wondered why Remus was calling Harrie, 'she', then he realised that none of his men knew Harrie's true identity. They all thought Harrie was a princess, not a prince.

"How are you feeling?" Severus asked, still cradling Harrie in his arms. He was afraid to let him out of his sight ever again.

"Thirsty," Harrie said.

Even before Severus could request it, Remus had gone to the nearby stream and brought back a filled water-skin. Harrie gulped it down then grimaced as cramps set in from drinking it too fast.

"Slowly," Severus urged. "Or you'll make yourself ill."

Harrie nodded and slowed down, but he drank nearly all of the water before his thirst seemed satisfied. Severus realised he was still cradling Harrie in his arms and the men were giving him strange looks. He snorted; they'd never seen this side of their warrior prince before, but Severus found he didn't really care what people thought of him any longer. Let them think him soft or mad, all that mattered was that Harrie was back in Severus' arms where he belonged.

"Are you well enough to ride, Harrie?" asked Remus.

"I'm still a little wobbly," Harrie admitted and now that he'd said it, Severus noticed that Harrie's limbs were trembling. It was some lingering after-effects from the poison, no doubt.

"You can ride with me," Severus said and anyone listening knew it as an order, not a suggestion or a request. Harrie didn't seem to mind.

"Thank you, Severus. I'd like that."

***

Harrie had never shared a horse with anyone before. He'd always ridden alone but he had to admit that sitting in front of Severus with his husband's arms wrapped around his waist was something he could happily get used to. He felt safe, safer than he had felt in such a long time. It was almost easy to forget that someone had been trying to kill him. That his _mother_ had been trying to kill him. Though the sky was powder blue there was a slight chill in the air; winter was on its way.

Harrie leaned back against Severus' chest and closed his eyes, breathing deeply. It wasn't only safety he was feeling in his husband's arms. His prick was twitching, but he tried to ignore it; for an erection would be pretty obvious in his close-fitting dress. Harrie guessed that Severus wanted to keep his male identity secret, for although homosexuality swent on, it was frowned upon both by polite society and the Church. And Harrie didn't want to do anything that would call Severus into question.

They had a marriage certificate, true, but neither of them had known Harrie was truly a man at the time. They had both been lied to by one or both of Harrie's parents so Severus was well within his rights to ask for an annulment. Harrie worried his bottom lip between his teeth, what if Severus cast him out because of the secrets? How could he bear it? And where would he go? His mother had tried to kill him and he wouldn't feel safe back there with her.

Silent tears dripped down his cheeks as Harrie tried his best not to give into the fears and worries.

"Harrie, what's this? What's wrong?" Severus whispered in his ear. "Are you feeling sick?"

"No. I'm afraid you won't want me anymore," Harrie muttered quietly, ashamed to admit it.

Severus called a halt and ordered his men to set up camp before helping Harrie down from the horse. "Remus, ensure we have some privacy," Severus said and Remus nodded before making complicated signs with his hands. Harrie guessed it was some kind of warding magic. Once Severus seemed secure that the wards were in place, he took hold of Harrie's hand and led him deeper into the forest. They walked for a while, the sounds of the men at the camp becoming distant before fading altogether. It was only the sounds of the forest about them now: birds singing in the trees andleaves rustling in the wind.   
They reached a clearing. The bright sun was shining directly down on them rather than being filtered through the trees and it had Harrie placing his hand in front of his forehead and squinting. There were tree stumps and fallen logs; a carpet of grass and moss was filled with daisies and buttercups. Severus sat down on one of the logs and pulled Harrie onto his lap. Harrie let out a yelp of surprise, which in turn made Severus smile.

"What's bothering you, Harrie?"

"I thought once you found out my parents lied to you, you wouldn't want to be married to me any longer. You have the grounds for an annulment."

"Do you want an annulment, Harrie?"

"No!" Harrie replied quickly. "I love you, Severus. I think I fell in love with you even before we ever met. I fell in love with the man who wrote me those wonderful letters. I kept them all you know, I tied them with a ribbon and kept them in a keepsake box. It was the only thing I'd ever done that my mother approved of. She despaired that I would ever do something girly. But I'm not a girl, Severus. I never really was, no matter what I looked like."

"No, Harrie, you're not a girl, but for our marriage to be considered valid you'll have to keep pretending that you are. Will that bother you, having to keep wearing women's clothes and pretending to be something you're not? Although two men together does happen, it is not approved of and we would be at the mercy of society and the Church. I already told you I don't want an annulment. It's not your fault your parents lied or that you were under a curse."

"As long as I get to be with you, I don't care what I have to do. I'll dress in women's clothes, gossip and sew and do anything else 'ladylike' you want me to do."

Severus chuckled. "I don't think we need to go that far, Harrie. Everyone knows how much of a tomboy Princess Harrie is. As long as you keep dressing like a woman, you can do any pursuit you want. I am not going to lock you in a bower and make you sew, not if you don't want to do it. I want a partner to share my life with. I want to share it with you, if you still want me."

"I do, Severus. I want that with all my heart."

Severus' eyes locked with his own, stealing the breath from Harrie's body in the raw need he saw revealed within them. Desire curled low down in his belly, licking a trail down his spine as Severus licked his lips with Harrie echoing the gesture soon after. Harrie's prick hardened almost instantly and his hips began thrusting almost of their own accord. Severus cupped Harrie's face in his hands and pressed his lips forcefully against Harrie's. This was no soft peck – this was heat and want and need all bundled up into the press of lmouth upon mouth.

Harrie's toes curled in his shoes and he arched his back, trying to get as close to his husband as possible. God, how had he survived all these months without this man by his side? Severus' hands moved, caressing all of Harrie's body from his neck to his back, his chest to his shoulders. When Severus inadvertently brushed against Harrie's left nipple he cried out into Severus' mouth at the spark of need that lit up his whole body, but most especially between his legs. Severus took the opportunity to push his tongue past Harrie's teeth to entangle it with his own. Harrie stiffened and groaned at the wonderful, hot, wet sensation as they tasted each other's mouths.

Harrie pulled his mouth away, gasping for breath after their impassioned kissing. "I want you, Severus," he whispered, his voice hoarse with desire.

Severus' eyes widened. "Here? But we have nothing to ease the way…"

Harrie laughed. "Not that. As pretty as this forest glade is, I want the first time you take me as a man to be on a proper bed. That's not to say we can't do other things." Harrie slid from Severus' lap and knelt down before him; Severus' eyes widened in understanding once Harrie started unlacing Severus' breeches.

Harrie had never done this before, not even on their wedding night, but he'd been hanging around with the soldiers and servants at the castle for so long that most of the time they'd forgotten he'd been there. And they were very free with their discussions. 

So Harrie had heard most of the theory, but knowing in your head what to do was still a little bit daunting when you were faced with your husband's large prick, almost purple with arousal and dripping clear fluid from the tip. "Harrie, you don't have to do this," Severus said, his voice shaky. "We can wait for a bed, like you said."

Harrie shook his head. "No, Severus. I want to do this for you." He looked deep into Severus' eyes and then bent his head to the task ahead of him. Severus' scent was deep and musky, earthy like the forest around them, but it was not unpleasant. In fact, Harrie's mouth was watering, anticipating what it would taste like. He lowered his head, opening his mouth wide and sucked on the head for all he was worth. Above him, Severus groaned and grabbed hold of Harrie's head, holding him in place. Harrie hummed in contentment, at the _possessiveness_ implied in the gesture. Severus needn't have worried; Harrie wasn't going anywhere, not ever again. Nothing could part them. Not his parents' lies; not all the secrets that had been hidden until now.

Harrie sucked and licked all around the head of Severus' cock, coating it with saliva as his mouth watered at the taste and loving the moans and groans he was wringing from the man above him. Severus was delicious and just the act of doing this – making love to Severus' cock – had Harrie's own cock throbbing with need too. He shifted restlessly on his knees, trying to ignore his body's demands, trying his best to concentrate on giving Severus pleasure.

"Harrie," Severus croaked hoarsely. "Touch yourself. I want to see you come."

_Oh, God!_ Harrie mewled around the cock in his mouth as his hands tugged his gown up above his groin. He held it with one hand, while the other delved inside his underlinens, already soaked with the evidence of his desire. His cock was so hard and hot in his hands and he didn't think it would take long to do as his husband requested. 

Even holding it, his dress kept slipping and he pulled his mouth off Severus' cock, grunting in frustration as he did so. "Naked," he said breathlessly. "We need to be naked."

If the way he almost ripped Harrie's gown from his body was any indication, Severus agreed wholeheartedly. Harrie saw Severus throw the dress somewhere off to the side, but he didn't really care about it now. He sat up on his haunches, dressed only in his underlinens, hose and shoes. Harrie pulled Severus' face down for a heated kiss. His hands tugged at Severus' tunic, discarding it before yanking down his breeches as well. There was a bit of a delay while Severus removed his boots. While he was doing that, Harrie removed his own stockings and shoes, but blushed when he got to the underlinens covering his groin.

Severus caressed his cheek and kissed him softly on the lips. "Together?" he suggested as he tugged on his own underclothes.

Harrie nodded and tugged them down, closing his eyes as he did so. He didn't feel comfortable in his new body quite yet, but Severus had words to soothe him in any situation.

"You're beautiful, my Harrie," Severus whispered before nibbling on Harrie's neck. Harrie felt an indescribable _something_ deep down in the pit of his belly as Severus kissed and suckled his neck as if Harrie was some sort of delicious treat. Gently, Severus pushed Harrie to the ground before lying full length on top of him.

Harrie's hips arched up to meet those of his husband. Both their bellies were slick with precome as they rutted against each other. Harrie could smell their musky scent as well as the natural scents of the earth around them. The grass was soft and springy on his back, more comfortable than he had anticipated, so he no longer cared that they weren't on a bed.

"Inside me," Harrie whispered close to Severus' ear. "I want you inside me."

Severus groaned and his thrusts sped up at the words. "But, Harrie, we have nothing…"

"We will. Make me come, Severus," Harrie urged on a breathless moan, his legs tightening around Severus' waist.

"Oh God!" Severus moaned and thrust hard against Harrie. "You're so hard already, I wouldn't have got an inch inside you before you'd come, spurting between us."

Harrie panted harshly at the seductive words, writhing at just the thought. He tried his best to hold back a little while longer but his body had been teased too long and he arched up with a wordless yell as his body was wracked with ecstatic pulses.

"Severus! Severus!" he wailed as he continued to spurt, wave after wave of pleasure engulfing him. Severus leaned down and kissed him hard before scooping up a handful of Harrie's spilled seed and delving between Harrie's legs.

Harrie's whole body was still trembling in the aftermath, his legs felt shaky and soft as if they wouldn't support him if he tried to walk right now. Not that he wanted to...

***

Severus stared at Harrie's face as he stretched him, looking for any hint of pain on those beloved features, but there was none. Harrie arched into each stroke, as if he couldn't get close enough to Severus' fingers. Severus tried to slow down, tried to take his time, but Harrie was mewling and writhing like a wildcat and Severus knew then that this was not the time to take it slow. Harrie was aroused and ready; there was no doubt about that: his nipples were standing up in little points and his eyes had gone dark with lust, with barely a sliver of emerald around the rim of his pupils. His cock was hard once more, dripping moisture onto his belly and the thatch of dark curls it nested in. It was no use; Severus had to dip his head for a taste of his husband. Harrie cried out and clamped his hands to Severus' head as he thrust forward and almost hit the back of Severus' throat.

It would be all too easy to allow Harrie to come like this, but Severus was harder than he'd ever been in his life and he wanted to come inside Harrie; wanted to feel Harrie's orgasm milk his own from him. Severus moaned at the thought and pulled his mouth away reluctantly. He held his fingers to Harrie's mouth. Harrie licked them like an eager puppy, moaning around his mouthful. It was a shame they had no other lubricant available besides spit and semen, but both of them were too far gone to wait until they got back to the palace. Lust was making Severus light-headed by the time he eased his cock inside Harrie.

Harrie gasped as he was breached this way for the first time and pain was etched on his features. He was so tight! Severus was gripped in a velvet fist. . "Breathe through the pain, Harrie. It gets better, I promise."

Harrie nodded and obeyed. Severus experimented with a few thrusts, changing his angle. He knew he'd hit the right spot when Harrie cried out, but this time it was no cry of pain, but one of ecstasy. Precome dripped in an almost steady stream onto Harrie's abdomen as Severus tried to aim for that spot over and over again.

Harrie lifted his hips and wrapped his legs around Severus' waist, his arms going around Severus' shoulders. Both of them were grunting and rutting wildly now and Severus felt the need coiling deep within his cock and sac and knew it would not be long before his climax overtook him. 

Severus manoeuvred a hand between them and rubbed frantically on Harrie's cock, wanting to feel Harrie come before he did. Harrie shrieked in bliss. His anal muscles clenched as he came, his semen bathing Severus' hand in ropes of pearl. The squeezing of those same muscles had Severus climaxing so hard that his vision greyed out for a moment.

"Harrie!" Severus seemed to come and come, Harrie's body draining him dry of every drop.

When the world finally settled once more, the first thing Severus saw was Harrie smiling up at him. His face was no longer snow-pale, but flushed with afterglow.

"I love you," Harrie whispered, tracing a line across Severus' jaw and down to his left nipple. "But next time I think we will need that bed."

"I'm sure that can be arranged," replied Severus as he swooped down and licked the dried seed off Harrie's body. "And then I can drink this right from the source."

Harrie's cock twitched but didn't show any signs of hardening again – at least not yet. He giggled. "I think I'd like that, Severus. I'd like that a lot."

 

**Epilogue**

It seemed as though the entire kingdom of Slytherin had turned up to welcome the new princess. From the balcony of the palace, all Harrie could see were crowds and crowds of people crammed into the square in front of the palace. Some were even in the fountains or hanging from tree branches. Harrie had never seen so many people in one place before, for there had never been this much pomp and circumstance in Gryffindor. 

Now, knowing what his parents had done, Harrie wasn't surprised that they hadn't wanted many visitors, just in case the secret had got out. The Weasleys were guests of honour and were already seated in the private dining room adjacent to the audience chamber.

Severus squeezed Harrie's arm, a comforting gesture that also sent a shiver of desire down his spine. He quelled it almost as soon as he felt it, for even in the ruby brocade gown, an erection would still be obvious. He and Severus spent a few moments more addressing the crowd below, before a page whispered something in Severus' ear.

He straightened and looked directly at Harrie, whose heart began to thud almost in time with the cheers and applause from the crowd below.

"They're here," Harrie said softly. Severus just nodded in reply. 

Severus took hold of Harrie's arm and led him back inside. A servant closed the doors leading to the balcony and pulled a red velvet curtain across the glass panes. Harrie's hands began to sweat as he paced the room; almost stumbling over the train of his gown.

At long last, the door to their audience chambers opened and the King and Queen of Gryffindor entered. There was no throne in this room, for Severus had explained to Harrie that he disliked sitting down when matters of state were to be discussed. 

Severus dismissed all the servants except for Remus.

Queen Lily was dressed in a silver gown with decorations of green flowers embroidered on it. James was more casual in a tunic of blue silk and black leather breeches. They both sank to one knee and bowed their heads. "Congratulations on your marriage, Severus," James said. "We wish things could have been different."

"Rise and greet my bride," said Severus, his voice as cold as Harrie had ever heard it. 

Lily was the first to rise and her normally rosy complexion took on the hue of curdled milk.

"You! No! It cannot be!"

"Surprised to see me alive, mother?" Harrie asked. His voice, too, had a tinge of ice in it.

James looked from his wife to his son, confusion etched on his face. "Harrie? You're still alive! That's wonderful!" James moved to embrace him, but Harrie stepped back, out of reach of his father's arms. "Harrie? Daughter, won't you embrace your father?"

"Daughter?" Harrie spat. "I was never a daughter! For eighteen years you lied to me!"

"And to me!" added Lily. "I didn't know you were a boy, Harrie, I swear it!"

"It's true," James replied in defence of his wife. "It was my decision. Don't blame your mother for my mistakes."

"I don't," Harrie said. "I blame her for her own."

"I have done nothing!" 

"No? You haven't tried to kill me once you discovered I wasn't the daughter you had longed for but a son?"

"What? Lily, tell them it's not true! You would never hurt Harrie!"

But on this matter, Lily was silent.

"Harrie is my responsibility now," said Severus. "No one harms what is mine and gets away with it. You deserve punishment. Execution is normal for murderers and traitors."

Lily swayed on her feet. James was quick to hold her up, as if he had forgiven her already for trying to kill Harrie. 

"But, Harrie has persuaded me to be lenient," Severus continued. "Instead of execution, you will both be banished from the Five Realms, never to set foot here again. You will not go as a King and Queen; you will go and live by your wits, as Harrie had to. Remus," Severus ordered and the sorcerer stepped out from his shadowed place by the wall. Remus pointed his hand at Lily and James. 

A blue glow enveloped Harrie's parents; obscuring them from sight. "Anyone can hunt you anywhere, but you will not die by my or by Harrie's hand. This is our mercy," Severus said.

When the glow cleared, a stag and doe were all that remained of the once proud queen and her husband.

 

THE END

**Author's Note:**

> Author's note:  
> There are many versions of Snow White, this story was loosely based on one where it was Snow White's actual mother who was jealous of her, not her stepmother.
> 
> This story is based on characters and situations created and owned by JK Rowling, various publishers including but not limited to Bloomsbury Books, Scholastic Books and Raincoat Books, and Warner Bros., Inc. No money is being made and no copyright or trademark infringement is intended.


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